THE LOUIS cruise ship Calypso, which sustained a fire in the engine room during a voyage in the English Channel at the weekend, arrived safely in Southampton on Saturday night, the company said yesterday.
A statement from Louis said all of the 462 passengers were taken to a hotel and flew home to the Netherlands on Sunday. The 236 crew members, who included two Cypriots, remained on the ship.
Louis said both the passengers and British rescue teams had expressed their gratitude to the captain and crew of the Calypso for the efficient and cool-headed manner in which they handled the crisis.
The fire broke out in the early hours of Saturday in the engine room of the ship, which was headed from London to Guernsey.
No injuries were reported and no passengers had to be evacuated from the ship. The lifeboats were taken out as a precaution, but not lowered.
British fire fighters flew out to the ship, about 20 miles from the coast, and helped crew put out the blaze. It was extinguished just after 6am and the ship was then towed to Southampton due to the damage.
Louis said its passengers had not suffered discomfort as power had been restored on the ship.
“The successful handling of this particular incident shows the continuous education and training of personnel and also the extensive experience of the company in crisis management, which was followed to the letter,” Louis said.
It expressed its regrets to the passengers for any discomfort they might have felt and thanked them for their understanding and their co-operation.
Louis said that a date for the Calypso’s return to service would be announced within days, once the damage had been assessed.
The ship has 243 cabins and a passenger capacity of 596. It is 135 metres long and had a rebuild in Greece in 1994, which included a total overhaul and installation of engineering equipment.
Reports from the UK yesterday said investigations were continuing into the cause of the fire, using special heat-seeking equipment and thermal imaging cameras. Engineers from Cyprus are also expected to travel to the UK to assist in the investigations and estimate the cost of repairs.
